Along with other elites groups, such as the politicians, educators, and corporate managers, the media has a responsibility in forming and perpetuating these beliefs because they have control over the resources of public discourse (van Dijik 1998). .
Media discourse is the main source of people's knowledge, attitudes, and ideologies Yet given the freedom of the press, the media elites are ultimately responsible for the prevailing discourses of the media they control (van Dijik 1998).
African Americans as the Out-Group.
African Americans have been an out-group from the beginning of their history in America, first as slaves and then as disfranchised free men. Their history of slavery, segregation, and systematic discrimination adds to the difficulty of receiving fair treatment. Furthermore, whereas many other ethnic group .
ps could fit in a dominant white society and be considered "white" themselves, the process of equating race to color worked against the African American community. Their skin color set them apart from the larger society and influenced how the white majority viewed them (Sacks 1994). .
New Racism.
As the old, blatant racism disappeared from the mainstream of accepted thought, a "new racism" as described by Barker in 1981 (van Dijk 1998) has emerged. It is so subtle that the majority of people deny its existence. "Out-group" races are not seen as biologically separate, but culturally different. They are seen through a cultural lens and lumped together with larger structural issues such as poverty, single parent families, drug abuse, and the dependency on Welfare. It is also assumed that there is a lack of will to succeed in the "out-group"" (van Dijik 1998). This racism seems to the "in-group" to be almost harmless because there is no violence or forced segregation. However, it is just as destructive in the ideology of race because it is perceived as natural and based on attitudes that are accepted as common knowledge.